Breathing attachment for use during shipment of oil filled submergible motor and pump assemblies



' March 22,1966

A. ARUTUNOFF BREATHING ATTACHMENT FOR USE DURING SHIPMENT OF OIL FILLEDSUBMERGIBLE MOTOR AND PUMP ASSEMBLIES Filed May 19, 1964 ARM/U5 ARU 7'UNOF F ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,241,492 BREATHING ATTACHMENT FORUSE DURING SHIPMENT OF OIL FILLED SUBMERGIBLE MOTOR AND PUMP ASSEMBLIESArmais Arutunotf, Bartlesville, Okla, assiguor to Reda Pump Company,Bartlesville, Okla, a corporation of Delaware Filed May 19, 1964, Ser.No. 368,616 3 Claims. (Cl. 103-87) This invention relates to oil filled,deep well submergible pump and motor assemblies, and consists moreparticularly in new and useful improvements in means for protecting suchassemblies from damage prior to installation and during shipment, byreason of expansion of the lubricating and protecting medium therein, asa result of variations in temperature.

These motor and pump assemblies usually comprise a series of coaxialunits arranged in superposed relation and including a pump unit, athrust compensating unit, a motor unit, and a protecting unit, such, forexample, as the general assembly disclosed in my prior Patent No.2,783,400, issued on February 26, 1957. These assemblies are usuallyshipped in operational condition with the intercornmunicating unitsfilled with a maximum volume of oil and protecting medium required fortheir proper performance. A suitably located breathing vent tocompensate for oil expansion and contraction when the assembly isinstalled and operating is plugged during shipment to prevent the escapeof the oil and protecting medium. Prior to installation, thisconventional plug is removed from the breathing vent to render theprotecting unit operative.

In the course of shipment, these assemblies are subjected to varyingdegrees of atmospheric temperature, as, for example, when lying in thesun on a shipping dock, and unless some means is provided to compensatefor the resulting expansion of the oil and protecting medium with whichthe assemblies are filled, considerable damage to the assembly mayoccur.

It is therefore the primary object of this invention to provide anexpandible breathing bag, located externally of the assembly, andconnected to the breathing vent thereof so as to accommodate anyexpansion of the medium filling the assembly.

Another object of the invention is to provide a breathing bag of thisnature which may be easily attached for shipment and removed prior toinstallation of the assembly.

A further object of the invention is to provide a breathing bag which isarranged in connection with an oil filled motor and pump assembly in amanner to receive the amount of filling medium which is expelled fromthe assembly by expansion, and upon subsequent contraction, will returnthe filling medium to the assembly.

With the above and other objects in view which will appear as thedescription proceeds, the invention consists in the novel featuresherein set forth, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and moreparticularly pointed out in the appended claims.

Referring to the drawings in which numerals of like character designatesimilar parts throughout the several views:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a typical motor and pump assembly,illustrating one method of attachment of the breathing bag;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged, fragmentary, sectional view, illustrating onemanner of connecting the breathing bag to the breathing vent; and

FIG. 3 is a similar view showing a modified bag connecting means.

Patented Mar. 22, 1966 In the drawings, referring first to FIG. 1, oneform of conventional assembly with which the present invention may beemployed, is generally represented by the numeral 5 and consists of apump unit 6, the intake area of which is enclosed by a cylindricalscreen 6a. Below and coaxial with the pump unit is a thrust compensatingunit 7 connected to the pump unit by a head 7a, and coaxially connectedbelow the thrust compensating unit 7, are a motor unit 8 and aprotecting unit 9 including a protecting fluid reservoir. It will beunderstood that the assembly here illustrated represents only oneexample of an oil filled motor and pump assembly with which theinvention may be employed and that the usefulness of the invention isnot confined to this particular assembly.

conventionally, the housings of all of the units below the pump unit arefilled with a lubricating and protecting fluid, and ordinarily, the unitimmediately below the pump unit, in this instance, the thrust unitconnecting head 7a, is provided with a vertical vent passageway 10, asseen in FIG. 2, which terminates at its upper extremity in aright-angular, radially directed branch passageway 11 which opens to theexterior at the periphery of the thrust unit head 7a, where it isprovided with internal threads 12 which normally receive a closing plugwhen the assembly is being shipped. The vent passageways 10 and 11 areconnected by tubing 13 in a conventional manner to the protecting systemand reservoir 9.

Ordinarily, when an oil filled assembly is shipped, the threadedpassageway opening 12, as before stated, is closed by a conventionalplug to prevent the escape of the lubricating and protecting fluidcontained in the assembly, and this plug is removed when the assembly isinstalled so as to permit normal breathing through the protecting systemand compensate for expansion and contraction of the filling medium.However, according to the present invention, instead of inserting aclosure plug in the threaded vent passageway 11, a tubular adaptor 14 isscrewed into the threaded opening 12 after the assembly is filled withthe required volume of protecting fluid. This adaptor 14 is providedwith a tubular projection or nipple 15 by means of which the breathingbag of the invention is connected, as hereinafter described.

The breathing bag 16, shown in FIG. 1, may be formed of rubber or anyother suitable expandible material having the necessary properties towithstand prolonged contact with lubricating oil and protecting fluid.The bottom of the bag 16 is provided with an opening which is connectedto the adaptor 14 by means of a flexible tube 17 of a material similarto that of the bag 16, the lower extremity of the tube 17 being forcedover the nipple 15 with a tight fit. The upper end of the inverted bag16 is attached to the unit immediately above the thrust unit 7 by anysuitable means. In the present embodiment, the bag lies against theperiphery of the cylindrical inlet screen 6a and its upper end issecured in place by a removable band or strap 18 of any convenient form,which encircles the unit 6 immediately above the inlet screen 6a.

Thus, during shipment, when the oil filled assembly 5 is subjected to atemperature suflicient to cause an expansion of the filling medium, anyfluid which is expelled due to expansion, passes through the breathingpassageways 10 and 11, and the connecting tube 17, into the bag 16,causing the latter to expand as shown in dotted lines in FIG. 1. Upon areduction in the surrounding temperature, as the fluid in the assemblycontracts, the previously expelled fluid is returned from the bag 16into the protecting system so that none of the lubricating oil orprotecting medium is lost.

It will be understood, of course, that when the assembly is installedfor operation in a well, the bag 16 is removed by disconnecting the band18 and unscrewing the adaptor 14 from the passageway 11, so that thenormal breathing system of the assembly can function in the usualmanner.

In the modified connecting means shown in FIG. .3, the outer end of thebreathing passageway 11 is enlarged and threaded as at 12a to receivethe complementary threads of the base flange 19 of a modified adaptorwhich, when inserted, lies entirely within the peripheral boundaries ofthe connecting head 7a. From the base flange 19, a tubular nipple 20extends outwardly in inwardly spaced relation to the threadedenlargement 12a, providing an annular clearance to permit the end of thetubing connection 17 to be slipped thereover, as shown. With thismodified form, when the assembly is installed for operation, it is onlynecessary to slip the end of the tubing connection 17 ofi? of the nipple20, leaving the adaptor in place and entirely confined within theperipheral boundaries of the assembly.

From the foregoing, it is believed that the invention maybe readilyunderstood by those skilled in the art without further description, itbeing borne in mind that numerous changes may be made in the detailsdisclosed without departing from the spirit of the invention as setforth in the following claims.

I claim:

1. In combination with an oil filled submergible motor and pump assemblyof superposed, cylindrically housed units having a breathing ventcommunicating with the oil filled interior of said, assembly; means forprotecting said oil filled assembly prior to installation, againstdamage resulting from expansion of the oil contained therein due totemperature increase while preventing loss of said oil, said meanscomprising an expandible breathing bag, detachable means for securingsaid bag alongside the outer wall of the housing of one unit of saidassembly, and tubular means detachably connecting the interior of saidbag to said breathing vent, whereby oil expelled from said assemblyduring expansion is received by said bag and returned therefrom uponcontraction.

2. The combination as claimed in claim 1, wherein said last-named meanscomprise a tubular adaptor threadedly engaging said breathing vent, anda nipple projecting from said adaptor for removably receiving the end ofsaid flexible tubing.

3. The combination as claimed in claim 1, wherein said breathing ventopens into an enlarged, threaded recess in the outer Wall of one of saidhoused units, and an adaptor threadedly engaging said recess and lyingentirely within the confines thereof, for removably receiving one end ofsaid tubular means.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,674,194 4/1954Arutunoff 103--87 2,682,229 6/1954 Luenberger 10387 2,703,371 3/1955Wightman 10387 2,857,181 10/1958 Myers 10'3--87 ROBERT M. WALKER,Primary Examiner.

1. IN COMBINATION WITH AN OIL FILLED SUBMERGIBLE MOTOR AND PUMP ASSEMBLYOF SUPERPOSED, CYLINDRICAL HOUSED UNITS HAVING A BREATHING VENTCOMMUNICATING WITH THE OIL FILLED INTERIOR OF SAID ASSEMBLY; MEANS FORPROTECTING SAID OIL FILLED ASSEMBLY PRIOR TO INSTALLATION, AGAINSTDAMAGE RESULTING FROM EXPANSION OF THE OIL CONTAINED THEREIN DUE TOTEMPERATURE INCREASE WHILE PREVENTING LOSS OF SAID OIL, SAID MEANSCOMPRISING AN EXPANDIBLE BREATHING BAG, DETACHABLE MEANS FOR SECURINGSAID BAG ALONGSIDE THE OUTER WALL OF THE HOUSING OF ONE UNIT OF SAIDASSEMBLY, AND TUBULAR MEANS DETACHABLY CONNECTING THE INTERIOR OF SAIDBAG TO SAID BREATHING VENT, WHEREBY OIL EXPELLED FROM SAID ASSEMBLYDURING EXPANSION IS RECEIVED BY SAID BAG AND RETURNED THEREFROM UPONCONTRACTION.